Important to Someone
by whycantistoplaughing
Summary: Tobias is Abnegation, and is taking his Aptitude test today. Unexpected results will lead him to new friendships and a new life. Rated M for language and possible violence.
1. Chapter 1

I don't think I've ever been that important to anybody.

I'm not even that important to myself but that was how I was raised.

If you considered the way my parents treated me as "raising".

So I've decided to make myself important.

I walk down the stairs that separate the two floors of the house that I share with my father. The plain brown wooden stairs have always been a part of my life. When I ran up them after being beaten by my own father. When I ran up them again the day I was told that my mother wasn't coming back. That she was _dead_. I have become familiar with these stairs, which have always lead me up to my only escape. My room.

I enter the kitchen to see something that I really never expect. My father is sitting down at the kitchen table, in front of a plate a steaming eggs and crispy red bacon. An identical plate sits on a placemat opposite him. Usually my father never does this. On most days he leaves early for work, leaving cold oatmeal in the refrigerator on days that it is his responsibility to cook this meal.

"Come, sit. We have a big day in front of us, don't we, Tobias?" he smiles. I quietly sit down. "I remember when I was your age. Choosing Abnegation wasn't hard at all." I stare quietly at my food, fork and knife in hand. I don't say a word. My father doesn't know that I'm not very interested in staying Abnegation. He continues to ramble on about our wonderful faction. _Strange_, I think. If he's _Abnegation then shouldn't he be praising everyone else, too? _This is another factor that leads into my final choice. Even if my result today is Abnegation, I will choose any faction but this one. It has lead me to a hard life, one that I don't want for my descendents.

Finally my father finishes his speech, "and that, my son is why I think you will be assigned Abnegation."

"Thanks, um, Dad." I reply politely. I rarely ever call him anything, but I figured that since today was going to be different, maybe I should treat him differently. I finish my breakfast quickly so I can walk to school. I wave to my father before walking outside into the fresh crisp morning air.

Today I will be taking my first simulation. A simulation that gives me the faction I would be most suited for in my life. I don't quite know what I will do with my results, but I do know that this choice can change a person, so I should be wary of my decision. As I cross the street I see several Erudite kids sneering and calling me names. Recently there have been reports written by Erudite that were meant to degrade Abnegation. I don't know why they were written, but they are very rude and untrue, or so my father says. Since he is a high government official, his reputation has been clawed at by these reports. I haven't read any of them, but a part of me tells me that they're true. I wouldn't put anything past my father after the way he treated me.

I arrive at the school, and navigate my way through the crowd. I'm usually alone at school. I don't have many friends. I never want to trust anybody, because whenever I do, something bad seems to happen. Throughout the day, I start to get more nervous about my simulation. Will it hurt? Is it possible to fail? What will it be like? Of course none of these questions can be answered since it is strictly prohibited to speak of the test.

Finally when the time comes, I am in the cafeteria. My name is called _"Tobias Eaton, Abnegation"_ and I walk towards the mirrored walls of simulation rooms. My hands are shaking.

A small, heavily tattooed, Dauntless woman stands by the door and greets me with a smile. In the room is a strange machine and a reclined chair, with a table beside them.

"Hello Tobias. My name is Mae. Are you ready for your testing?"

"Umm, I-uh think so." I say, my voice not steady at all.

"Sit down in that chair and drink this." she replies and holds out a strange, sweet smelling liquid. I follow her instructions and suddenly, I have a strange sensation. I feel the urge to stand up. I look around the room. It has to be the same room, but it feels different.

"Mae?" I murmur as I look around. She's gone. "Mae?" I say louder this time, a little more panicked. The only thing left in the room that I truly recognize is a table. On top of it there is a knife and some cheese. _Choose_ a voice tells me. I ponder for a second before quickly taking up the cheese. A snarling dog enters the room, and my first instinct is to throw the cheese. It scampers away, after the white-yellow chunk. A small child enters the room "Puppy!" she squeals with excitement. I realize that if I don't act immediately, the dog will maul her. I jump between them, shutting my eyes as the dog lunges towards me.

When I open my eyes again, I'm on a bus. My hand clenches the handle. I look around, confused. A man reading a newspaper beckons to me. I approach him cautiously. "Look, this man is a murderer. Do you know him?"

I shake my head. The man in the picture looks familiar, but it seems smarter to keep my mouth shut.

"You could save me you know. You could save all of us! _Do you know this man?_"

"Um, I don't know. Maybe."

I wake up in the simulation room.

"Well, Tobias, you did pretty well. Your result was Abnegation." Mae says, standing next to the machine. "But there's something else that occurred during the simulation."

"What is it? Do I need to retake it? Did I do something wrong?" I ask panicked. I start to sweat. What could possibly have occurred?

"Well, I noticed that, during your simulation, you responded to some things... differently." She says, as if trying to tell a small child that a family member has passed. I've heard it before. She's not telling me something.

"Different how?" I am no longer panicked, I am now curious and apprehensive at the same time.

"There's a condition that relates to simulations, Tobias. It's very dangerous, and usually quite noticeable. Luckily, yours is very subtle and you should be able to hide it. This condition is called Divergence. Very few know about it. In fact, the only reason I know about it is because I've encountered it before and made the mistake of reporting it. Tobias, whatever you do from now on, just make sure never to speak of it. They might start watching, which is something you don't want them to do."

I nod slowly, not quite sure how to respond.

"Go outside and act natural. As I said before, your Divergence is so small, you have to look closely and carefully to find it. Your result was still Abnegation." she says assuring me. "No one will know."

I nod again. It's hard for me to process all of this, but I somehow manage to sit up and walk outside to sit with the rest of the Abnegation kids. Thankfully, we don't talk usually, so I have time to think this over.

She said I was Abnegation. But I know I'm not.


	2. Chapter 2

I wait at the bus stop with my fellow Abnegation students. As we stand silently, I begin to think. Things could be different. In just one day, my entire life could be changed. Tomorrow, I may not be wearing the same gray Abnegation uniform. Tomorrow I may have thrown this life away, so I can start a new one in a different faction.

As we load onto the bus, you can tell the sixteen year olds from the rest. They look around, almost as if experiencing a case of de ja vu. I'm too distracted to think about the simulation, so I'm assuming that I'm one of the few that notice it. I do ponder for a minute though. I think about if that had been real. What if I didn't save that man's life?

Goes to show that I'm not fit for Abnegation.

The bus shifts and those of us standing up hold on to railings to keep our balance. A short blonde girl next to me nearly falls down. A boy, most likely her brother, asks her if she's ok. Suddenly, a feeling of jealousy wells up inside of me. I've never had a sibling. I've only had myself. Perhaps I could've had one before my mother left us. I knew why she didn't though. She didn't want another child to live like I did. She didn't want another me.

The bus screeches to a halt. It is my stop. I navigate quickly, but politely, through the crowd. As I step off the bus, I notice my father is standing uncomfortably in the middle of the sidewalk. I sigh.

"Why are you here? I thought you'd be at work." I ask, trying not to sound too annoyed. He doesn't like being disrespected.

"Well, I thought I'd walk my son home. At least from the bus stop. It's not too far Tobias." He smiles, as if trying to ignore my comment. "Plus, I'd like to talk to you a bit."

I try not to roll my eyes. He's going to explain Abnegation initiation for the millionth time. "Fine." I murmur as I adjust my backpack on my shoulders.

"Tobias tomorrow you will experience one of the most important memories a person can have. You will choose your faction. Now, I know I've been talking about this ceremony for a while, but it's important to know what you're getting yourself into. When I was sixteen, I had conflicting emotions on joining Abnegation. Five factions sometimes seemed too many to choose from. What really helped me decide was my aptitude test. And I hope yours helped you.

"Also, there are many secrets in each faction. Even in Candor, there are things they don't tell you." His tone turns very serious. "I hope you choose right."

I don't look into his eyes. I've heard that voice before. I heard it when his anger was escalating. Escalating to the point that he hurt me. Or sent me into the hallway closet for an entire day with only a small supply of water. No matter what, he always uses this voice eventually. He hasn't used it in a while, perhaps several months, but if I don't tread cautiously, his temper will rise.

"I think that from what you've been telling me, plus the aptitude test, I am secure about what faction I will be choosing tomorrow." I say, with a false smile.

And I think I do know which faction I will be choosing tomorrow. And I think it will destroy that bastard's life.

I can't wait until tomorrow.

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**Ok so shorter chapter, i know, but I wanted to post it ASAP**

**Please make sure to leave a review!  
**

**This is my first Divergent story, and I'm sorry if I mess up some of the canon details.  
**

**Thanks for reading though!  
**


	3. Chapter 3

That night, I don't hear my father call me downstairs for dinner. When I decide to find out why, I see that he's left a note saying that he was invited to eat with the Priors. I don't know many of Dad's co-workers. He once said that he's too embarrassed or ashamed to let me leave the house, let alone go have dinner with their families. That was a night spent in the coat closet. I cook my own dinner, a balanced meal of fish, green beans, and rice.

I sit down at the table. I can't help but think of what I'm going to do tomorrow. I'm going to change my life, become someone else. I've always been so afraid that I'm not going to make the right decision. But is there only one choice that's right? All my life I've been bruised by those I trusted. Is the right choice to leave them? Or is it better to stay, to take care of them? These questions don't matter anymore. I know where I stand. It's time that I stop taking orders. I need to make my own choices.

I clean up after my dinner in the sink. I didn't eat all of it, but as long as my father finds out, I won't get in trouble. Heck, I wouldn't get in trouble anyways. I'm free of his clutches tomorrow. As I'm walking up the wooden steps, I hear my father come in. I quickly dash up the stairs as quietly as I can. When I'm in my room, I let out a sigh of relief. I'm almost sure that if he caught me up this late, he wouldn't be happy.

I can barely sleep with tomorrow looming ahead. The thought of having to leave this life is scary, yet exhilarating. All my life, I thought that I would stay in the same faction until I died. I expected a life of giving and selflessness. Starting tomorrow, I can be whatever I want. I can wear a color besides gray. I can speak at meals.

Somehow I fall asleep amidst my thinking. In the morning I am dead tired. I motivate myself though. I quickly get dressed. Right before I open my door, I look at my room. I might not see it again. I'll sleep somewhere else tonight. My bed is made neat. My floor is spotless. The curtains are open, and even the light spilling out of them is clean. Only my shelves taint the picture of a typical Abnegation style room. Filled with various knick knacks, it's my last defiance to my faction.

I try to linger in my room as long as possible, but when I know that I can't avoid my father for much longer, I go downstairs. My father sits down at the table, and when he looks up from his newspaper, he grins at me.

"There he is. There's today's special guy. You need to hurry up and eat a good breakfast. Such an important day we've got ahead of us." He glances at his clock. "Well hurry up now, you've only got fifteen minutes now."

I shuffle towards the toaster and make toast with bread from the breadbox. I sit down with a glass of milk. I eat quietly, with Marcus seemingly deeply interested in the Candor section of his paper. Even though he seems welcoming this morning, there's still tension in the air. After I finish, we both stand up to help each other clean the dishes. My father tries to help best he can, as if I need all my energy to slice my hand and let my blood spill onto whichever object I choose. He doesn't know that it won't be touching Abnegation stones today.

Finally, the time comes where we have to leave. Marcus insists that I ride in his car with him to the Hub. He tries his best at idle conversation as we drive. His tone starts to become serious though when he says I had best make the right choice today, as if choosing another faction would give him the opportunity to punish me. Of course he knows that if I chose another faction he would possibly never see me again. The only time he would see me would be on Visiting Day, but I doubt he would dare do that.

When we get there, he parks the car in his reserved space; since he's an important government official, he gets this kind of privilege. He also gets it because it's his son's Choosing Ceremony. We make our way to the elevators along with some of the rest of Abnegation, but when we see a group of Erudite, we take the stairs so they can have the elevator's luxury. As we ascend, I pay attention the uniform _thud-thud_ of Abnegation for what is possibly the last time. After what seems like forever, we are on the floor of the Ceremony.

I make my way through the crowd until I come to my seat, between Isabelle Egent and Kendall Dutos, two Candor girls. This year, Dauntless leaders conduct the ceremony, so I sit patiently as one of them reads an introductory speech. I'm lost in thought, so I don't notice Reese Zesker, who chooses his original faction, Amity. Nor does Jordan Teller, the first faction transfer, catch my eye. It's only when Isabelle stands up and walks over towards the five pedestals that I realize it's my turn.

"Tobias Eaton" I stand up.

The crowd expects me to choose Abnegation of course.

My father expects that.

My faction expects that.

I somehow start walking and take the knife.

They expect it so much they don't even pay attention.

They're mostly a bit bored by now.

I slice my palm.

What will they think?

What will _he_ think?

I'm tired of _him_. I'm tired of this _faction_. I'm tired of _forgetting myself_.

_I'm tired of my life ._I think as my blood spills over Dauntless coals.

I hear a collective gasp. I grin.

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**Ok so I may not update for another week or two because I am going to be out of town, and therefore away from my computer. **

**Please review it and tell me what you like/dislike**

**I'm sorry if I'm not very accurate, I haven't read the books in a while.**

**Thank you for reading it so far though!**


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